Kampala: The dreams of dozens of children who once trusted their teacher to lead them to a brighter future have turned into heartbreak and confusion, following revelations that the Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) results they proudly presented were forged.
Police this week confirmed the arrest of Wafula Ivan, the 34-year-old director of Earnest Nursery and Primary School in Kisugu Parish, Makindye Division, who had been on the run for two years.
Wafula is accused of masterminding a fake examination scheme in 2020 that left an entire class of pupils with counterfeit results.
According to police spokesperson SSP Patrick Onyango, Wafula allegedly registered his Primary Seven candidates for the official 2020 PLE but secretly transported them to an unknown location in Busia District, where they sat for counterfeit papers falsely presented as UNEB exams.
“The children were duped into believing they were sitting for genuine UNEB papers,” Onyango said.
“After the supposed exams, they were returned to Kampala, and Wafula issued them fake results complete with fabricated recommendations.”
With the forged results in hand, the unsuspecting students joined different secondary schools and continued their education — until this year, when their world came crashing down.
In 2024, Ebenezer Secondary School, where several of the victims were enrolled, asked the students to produce their original PLE result slips to register for the Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE). None could be verified.
When parents and students went back to Earnest School for clarification, Wafula reportedly vanished. Police investigations later confirmed that no candidates from Earnest School were registered under UNEB in 2020, and the supposed results were completely falsified.
The fake documents were submitted to UNEB for verification, and the examination body confirmed the forgery.
“This was a deliberate act of betrayal,” Onyango said. “He destroyed the futures of children whose parents trusted him with their education.”
Wafula, who had been in hiding for two years, was finally arrested yesterday after an extensive manhunt.
Police say inquiries are ongoing to determine whether other individuals were involved in the forgery ring.
For the affected students, however, the arrest offers little comfort. Many have now been forced out of school, their academic records voided and their hopes uncertain.
A parent of one of the victims, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the ordeal as “a nightmare no parent should endure.”
“We paid school fees, bought uniforms, and believed our children had passed. Now we are told it was all fake. My son cries every day,” she said tearfully.
The Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) has not yet issued a statement on how it plans to support the affected learners, but police have urged schools and parents to always verify candidate registration details directly with UNEB.
The arrest of Wafula Ivan closes one chapter of a painful saga — but for the young victims whose education was stolen, the search for justice and a second chance at their dreams has only just begun.
(daily express)